Pennsylvania in Focus

(The Center Square) – As the ink dries on the U.S. Steel merger with Japanese competitor Nippon, one state lawmaker breathes a deep sigh of relief on behalf of thousands of workers, most of whom she’s never met. Sen. Kim Ward, the fifth-term legislator from Greensburg and the highest-ranking Republican in the upper chamber, recently told The Center Square the long fight to the finish line was a personal mission to protect the commonwealth’s legacy. As part of the merger, Nippon will invest $2.2 billion dollars into steel mills in southwestern Pennsylvania in what’s considered the most significant investment in the industry to date.

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(The Center Square) – Home care workers said Tuesday that a $21 million proposal to increase wages and benefits isn’t just a good idea, it’s the bare minimum to keep the industry float. Most in the state earn between $13 and $14 per hour due to the Medicaid reimbursement rate. The proposal would increase salaries for participant-directed care workers who are not employed through an agency.

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(The Center Square) - The week begins with a historic first, the largest capital investment in Pennsylvania history. Amazon’s commitment of $20 billion for data centers promises to change the state’s landscape for years to come. The first of the two centers will be built in Luzerne County and Bucks County where the projects promised to deliver at least 1,250 jobs. Speaking from the Jackson Mansion in Berwick on Monday, Gov. Josh Shapiro said the deal comes after 20 months of negotiations between Amazon, the state, and local leaders.

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(The Center Square) – Gov. Josh Shapiro is in a unique position regarding the deployment of the Pennsylvania National Guard. He can consent to doing so, as he has for several federal requests since taking office two years ago, or he can decline, as he has also done during those same two years. “As part of their responsibilities, the PANG has state and federal missions and remains constantly prepared to respond to both,” said Angela Watson, communications director for the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. “Securing the border is a federal responsibility – and in the time Governor Shapiro has been in office, PANG has conducted several mobilizations to provide support for that mission. On multiple occasions in 2023, 2024, and 2025, over 100 PANG soldiers have been mobilized to the border.”

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(The Center Square) – Pennsylvanians with intellectual and developmental disabilities gathered with advocates in the Capitol on Monday to urge lawmakers to preserve Medicaid from proposed spending cuts at the federal level. In particular, the group spoke out about the importance of home and community-based supports that allow many disabled people to remain independent rather than receiving care in an institutional setting.  “Without strong funding commitments, people with disabilities and the caregivers, providers, and communities that support them stand to lose the most,” said Francine Hogan, director of the nonprofit Vision for Equality.

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(The Center Square) – In what was billed as a “Senate showdown,” Fox News hosted a congenial discussion between U.S. senators from Pennsylvania and self-described friends Dave McCormick and John Fetterman. The two men discussed points of agreement, like confronting Iran and Iranian-backed militant groups. They also discussed points of divergence like the cuts to Medicaid proposed in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, as the resolution is known. Fetterman, a first-term Democrat, said he’d be voting against the bill, citing concerns for Medicaid and SNAP, though he emphasized that neither his “no” vote nor his colleague’s “yes” vote made them bad people.

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(The Center Square) – What’s next for U.S. Steel after its $14 billion merger? It’s either the golden age or a clever mirage, depending on who gets asked. That’s because the final details, while still scant, don’t satisfy critics about the iconic Pittsburgh company’s new partnership with Japanese-owned Nippon Steel. What is known is that on Friday, President Donald Trump took a victory lap in West Mifflin to celebrate the agreement, surrounded by mill workers, labor unions and state and congressional lawmakers. Calling it the most significant investment in the history of the American steel industry, the president said it will ensure “the best and strongest steel in America will forever be made in America and made in Pennsylvania.”

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(The Center Square) – Whether it’s gas or “green,” most Pennsylvanians just want affordable electricity. This according to a new statewide poll from Public Opinion Strategies released Thursday, which found that three-quarters of respondents worry about access to affordable electricity in Pennsylvania and nationwide. Another 78% said their household energy bills have risen over the last two years as part of an inflationary trend that some attribute to uncertain state and federal government regulations. 

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(The Center Square) - As the federal government weighs cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Pennsylvania House is set to vote on a bill that would charge non-profit organizations with overseeing incentives to SNAP recipients for purchasing fresh fruits and vegetables. The Food Bucks bill, which received bipartisan support in committee, would provide SNAP users with 40 cents in additional benefits for every dollar spent on approved items. It mirrors programs currently offered in some counties across the state, including Allegheny.

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(The Center Square) – Money spent addressing opioid use disorder last year accounts for 5% of Pennsylvania’s GDP, according to a report from Avalere Health. The study used state and national data to analyze costs across federal, state, and local governments, businesses, households, society, and individuals and found that the crisis has cost more than $3.9 trillion nationally. Pennsylvania alone accounted for over $232 billion of that total. 

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